I wish I could tell you
by Schitzoid
Summary: This fic is about team 8, it takes place about 5 months after the chuunin exams. It's about their feelings about themselves, others and eachother [Indefinate hiatus]
1. Part 1 Secrets

Part 1-Secrets

He sat in the tree and watched her. He was by no means inconspicuous, far from it, in fact. He just sat on a branch and watched her. Watched her train. Watched as she cut her hands from practicing palm thrusts on a wooden dummy. Watched as Kurenai-sensei tried to talk her into calling it a day.

He knew he didn't have a chance, not yet anyway. She was head over heels in love with Naruto, as he saw it. Uzamaki Naruto, the idiot of the village.

"Hang on a minute; I'll be right back…" Kurenai looked up at the branch where he was sitting as she said this.

"Shit…" he'd been spotted. He turned around to escape and was greeted with the face of a suspicious Kurenai

"Are you ok Shino-kun?" This wasn't really a question of his well being so much as a 'what are you doing?'

"…" He stated, as if his silence meant something

"Shino speak, I can't read your silence as well as Kiba and Hinata can"

"I just came to see how training was going" He was glad that the majority of his face was covered otherwise she would have known for sure that he was lying.

Kurenai merely raised an eyebrow at this and allowed Shino to go. In his mind he breathed a silent sigh of relief. Yuuhi Kurenai wasn't stupid. She was one of few people in hidden leaf village who knew of Hinata's feelings for Naruto even though she never said anything. This few were himself, her, Kakashi-sensei, Sakura from Naruto's team and Shikamaru from Asuma-sensei's team, none of them spoke about it was obvious that they knew. He was glad no one knew how he felt; his clan was often looked down on by the Hyuga clan. Even though she didn't like a lot of their rules, and was shunned by her clan, her father would never allow it. Hyuga Hinata was not exempt from his rules.

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A/N This is the first Chapter, what did you think? I know it's short but I thought it worked,

Please R&R


	2. Part 2 Show of strength

Part 2-show of strength

He was glad no one knew how he felt; his clan was often looked down on by the Hyuga clan. Even though she didn't like a lot of their rules, and was shunned by her clan, her father would never allow it. Hyuga Hinata was not exempt from his rules…

*******

The next day he headed for their meeting place, Kiba told him that Kurenai-sensei wanted to meet with them. He was afraid that Kurenai might bring up the previous day Even though he knew she wouldn't.

He entered the classroom; Hinata was the only one there. She hadn't noticed him yet; she was still half asleep and going through her medicine books. It was handy having a healer in the group; Kiba often got poisoned when they were sparring.

He walked across the room and sat next to her. He could smell the natural perfume that her body gave off. It was sweet, like a rose scented perfume, only he thought she smelt better. The bugs didn't like the smell but he thought it added to her natural, silent beauty.

"Oh! Good morning Shino-kun"

"Morning, Hinata"

"Shino-kun, I'm developing a new antidote, I was wondering if… if you could give me a sample of the poison you secrete when you use your jutsu?"

"…" He nodded and pulled up his sleeves. He performed a lot of hand seals that were too fast to be copied and a few spikes popped out of each arm. "Don't you need to use your byakugun?"

"Oh yeah… thanks for reminding me Shino-kun" She performed a series of seals and then unleashed her byakugun, "Woah"

"What?"

"Your chakra is really pretty Shino-kun"

"…" He ducked his head down so that she wouldn't see him blush

She managed to get what she needed into a jar without poisoning herself; it was hard to deal with free flowing chakra, even if it had been turned into a poison.

The door slid open and Kiba entered the room. "Morning Hinata, Shino" he walked straight past them, sat at a desk and put his feet up on it. It was rare for him to be able to do this as Kurenai-sensei was often there before him.

"Good morning Kiba-kun."

"…" Shino stated and nodded, this time meaning good morning. He released his jutsu and pulled down his sleeves as Kurenai entered the room.

"Good morning everyone" She said, chirpier then usual.

_She's been out with Asuma-sensei again, she's always really happy after they go out, _Shino concluded

"Good morning Kurenai-sensei" Said Hinata, happy as she had almost completed her new antidote

"Morning Sensei" Kiba shouted across the classroom, then he removed his feet from the desk after a stern look from his sensei

"…" Shino's silence seemed to be a whole language, with a few nods, or gestures he could convey a wide range of comments

"Hinata, I want you to train with Kiba and Shino for today, I'm re-nominating you all for the Chuunin exam this year."

"Ok…"

"Kiba, I want you to train without Akamaru, the rules may treat him as a weapon but when you enter for the Chuunin exam again, you may not be allowed to use him."

"Ok Sensei"

"The same for you Shino, I want you to practice your taijutsu skills" She left the room, she decided to meet them after their training

"…" He nodded and looked over at Hinata; she was occupied with developing her antidote.

"Hinata?" Kiba tried to get her attention

"Yes Kiba…?"

"What are you doing?"

"Developing an antidote for Shino's poison"

"But it's meant to kill"

"What if someone were poisoned by accident?"

"Like who…?"

"Maybe you during sparring."

"Yeah I wouldn't want to die" He paused in thought for a second, "hey, Hinata?"

"Yes Kiba?"

"You've gotten a lot more confident lately"

"It's only because I'm comfortable around you guys, if I were to talk to Naruto-kun or Sakura-chan, I'd be my old self"

"Kiba…"

"Yo, what's up Shino?"

"We should probably start training"

"Shino-kun's right Kiba"

"Isn't your chakra running low Hinata?" Shino questioned

"No, why?"

"You haven't released your byakugun yet"

"Oh yeah, I forgot" She giggled a bit and then released it.

"How can you forget?" Asked Kiba, "Everything looks weird like that doesn't it?"

"You get used to it quite fast actually."__

"Come on! I wanna kick your ass!" Kiba shouted and pointed at Shino

"You sound like Naruto" Shino pointed out

"No, I forgot to let my hair move about in the wind like an idiot"

"Kiba-kun, stop insulting Naruto-kun please"

"You're so sensitive Hinata, that's so sweet!" He pretended to chase her around the room like a love struck puppy.

"Shut-up Kiba" Shino was sitting on the grass with a few ants in his hands

Hinata sat against the wall; she was almost finished with the antidote, "Umm… Shino-kun?"

"Yes Hinata?"

"I need some more of the poison, I didn't get enough last time"

He walked over to where she was sitting. He performed a series of had seals and then the spikes popped out of his arm again, she then proceeded to scrape the needed poison into a jar, again, without poisoning herself.

"Thank you Shino-kun"

"HEY! I'm waiting over here!" Kiba was getting bored by himself

Shino headed over to Kiba, they stood in their opening stances when Shino remembered, "no Akamaru"

"Oh yeah, I forgot" He knelt down to let Akamaru jump off his head, "Sorry man, I can't fight with you this time." Akamaru barked in agreement and ran over to where Hinata was. She put aside her things and allowed him to curl up in her lap. Kiba turned to face Shino, "let's start"

This battle was purely taijutsu skills, in other words, purely hand-to-hand combat, no ninjutsu, no genjutsu, the closest thing they were allowed to use were taijutsu sequences.

_This fight is going to be interesting, _Hinata thought to herself, _Even though Kiba appears to be better at taijutsu, he's not allowed to use his beast mimics, and Shino hasn't fully revealed his taijutsu skills yet as he's only really needed the odd punch or kick now and then._

Naturally Kiba started the fight with a kick towards Shino's face, Shino blocked it, but the force pushed him back a little. As Kiba took a few seconds to regain his balance, Shino appeared behind him and as Kiba turned his head to look behind him Shino delivered a punch that sent him flying and slide across the grass.

_Shit, I didn't even see him come up behind me, is Shino really THAT fast?_

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A/N this is my 2nd chapter, much longer I know


	3. Part 3 Truth be told

Part 3-Truth be told 

_Shit, I didn't even see him come up behind me, is Shino really THAT fast?_

As Kiba tried to get up from the grass Shino appeared behind him again, He kicked Kiba and sent him sliding across the grass. This time, however, Kiba managed to stay on his feet and used his hands to steady himself. He rose up and flew at Shino, he delivered a flurry of punches and Shino dodged every one with ease. Shino then sent a palm thrust to his stomach that knocked Kiba on the floor. Kiba sat up and coughed up blood.

"Ok, stop"

"You need practice; you're useless without your ninjutsu"

"Yeah, I know" He leaned over to his side and threw up more blood.

"Kiba-kun! Are you alright?" Hinata called out from the sidelines

"He'll be fine, no major damage, just a side effect from the palm thrust"

Kiba coughed a few more times and finally stopped coughing up blood, "See, I'm fine, no more blood" He coughed again, "Could do with a drink though…" He mumbled under his breath

"What was that Kiba?" Hinata wanted to know what he said as Akamaru had suddenly started barking in agreement

"I was wondering if you could head to the ramen shop and get us some…" 

"Ramen…?" Shino offered

"Yeah! That's the one!"

"Ok, what kind would you like?" Hinata asked

"Umm… a… Large miso Ramen!"

"And you Shino-kun?"

"Anything, just make it a small one"

"Ok! I'll be back in about half an hour"

She left for the Ramen shop and started to hum a song on her way, it began to rain so she put up her hood. She ran the rest of the way, as it was only a few minutes walking distance. As she neared the shop she saw 3 familiar heads. A blonde, a blackish/blueish haired one and a pink haired female. She got inside the shop and let down her hood.

"Good afternoon Hinata!!" Naruto greeted her with a mouth full of Ramen

"**IDIOT!!!!" **Sakura punched Naruto in the head, "**DON'T SPEAK WITH YOUR MOUTH FULL!!!"** She looked over at Hinata, "Afternoon Hinata"

"Afternoon" Sasuke simply nodded and carried on eating his ramen

"Good afternoon Sasuke, Sakura…" She could feel her cheeks burning, "Naruto-kun…"

She was staring at Naruto and was suddenly interrupted by the man at the counter, "What would you like?"

"What? Oh, umm… a large miso ramen and 2 small king prawn ramen"

"King prawn… haven't made that in a while… 5 minutes!" He headed into the back room to make the ramen

"So Hinata" This time Naruto had fully swallowed his food, "I heard you're going to enter for the Chuunin exam again"

"Yeah, Ino pig-chan is entering again too"

"You're gonna do well Sakura-chan!" he tried to put his arm around her to have it slapped away, he looked at Hinata, "and you, I expect to see you pass this time"

Hinata blushed and looked away, as was her style, "thank you Naruto-kun"

"You're gonna pass with my future wife!"

"You wish"

"I do actually"

"Future wife…?" Hinata was devastated, she had heard Naruto liked Sakura but she had hoped it was just a rumour.

"What's wrong Hinata? You don't look too good" Naruto was wondering why she looked so sad all of a sudden

"N-nothing" She took the bag with the ramen in it, she placed the money on the counter and left, she could hear Sakura shouting at Naruto

**"YOU IDIOT!!!!!!!!!!"**

When she got outside it was still raining, she ran, she ran as far as she could and didn't stop until she got to her 'secret place'. What he said was ringing in her mind, 

'My future wife'

'Future wife'

'Wife…'

She sat under a tree and began to cry, There was lightning now, reflecting how she felt.

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A/N-What can I say? The sizes vary


	4. Part 4 Plan

Part 4-Plan

When she got outside it was still raining, she ran, she ran as far as she could and didn't stop until she got to her 'secret place'. What he said was ringing in her mind, 

'My future wife'

'Future wife'

'Wife…'

She sat under a tree and began to cry, There was lightning now, reflecting how she felt.

*******

Kiba and Shino were beginning to get worried, it and been an hour and a half. It only took half an hour to make a complicated order and come back.

"I think we should look for her" Shino commented, it was the only thing he said since she left.

"Me too" Kiba agreed, Akamaru also barked in agreement.

They left the room and headed in different directions, Shino knew exactly where she might be. He climbed up a tree and looked around for the hokage monument. When he managed to spot the 4 faces of the hokages he headed in that direction. _Don't let anything happen to you Hinata…_

He moved from tree to tree until he reached the bottom of the monument. He looked for the right tree and jumped across to it. He looked down from the branch he was on and spotted a white hood. He jumped down from the branch and crouched down next to her. He put his hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him.

"Shino-kun?"

"…" He sent his bugs to give Kiba a message; he hoped Kiba would pick up on it and meet them back at the classroom.

"How did you know where I was?"

"Because… I know you… why were you crying?"

"N-Naruto-kun" she mumbled under her breath, she sniffed back a few tears, "how…how did you know I was crying?"

"You're probably the only person in the world who would sit in the rain to hide the fact that you're crying." He took of his coat and draped it over her shoulders

"Shino-kun? You shouldn't-"

Shino cut her off, "your immune system isn't as advanced as mine, you… you could catch pneumonia" He turned his head so that she wouldn't be able to see his face

"Thank you Shino-kun"

They got back to the classroom and Kiba was sitting there with his feet up on the desk, He didn't notice them come in until Akamaru started barking.

"You guys took your time," He got up from the desk and walked over to them.

"Sorry Kiba-kun, your ramen got cold"

"That's ok… Are you alright Hinata?"

She looked away out of the corner of her eye, as was her style, "Yeah, I'm fine…"

"Hinata, I'll go and heat up the ramen, you stay here" Shino left the classroom and dragged Kiba with him

"What's with you?" Kiba asked the second they shut the door behind them

"Nothing…" Shino walked ahead down the corridor and looked around, **"WHERE THE HELL IS THE DAMN KITCHEN IN THIS PLACE!" **He slammed his fist against a wall out of frustration and knocked a picture off the wall 

"Chill, man…" he picked up the picture and looked at it. It was a picture of the nine rookies. The glass was cracked and a few bits had come of because of the fall, "So what happened to Hinata?" He hung the picture back up

"Naruto happened"

"What did he do?"

"I don't know, but she was really upset" He looked around and pulled Kiba over to where he was. He whispered his plan in Kiba's ear.

"Whoa, that's pretty brutal Shino"

"So you don't like the plan?"

"On the contrary. It's so me… I love it"

"Tomorrow…"

They went and heated up the ramen; they came back and sat with Hinata.

"Oh! You're back; you scared me. Did you heat them up?"

"Yeah! Large miso ramen, mine! I guess these two are yours." He passed the bag to Hinata.

"Here, this is yours." She passed one of the containers to Shino, "Oh yeah, here's your coat." She took off the coat and passed it over.

"Thanks." He did up his coat and opened up the ramen container, "king prawn?"

"Isn't that your favourite Shino?" Kiba asked, similarly to Naruto, with a mouth full of Ramen

"Yeah…" He turned to look at Hinata who was busying herself with her ramen.

*******

The next morning he woke up and met Kiba, the two of them then both tailed him until he reached team 7's meeting room.

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A/N-I love being evil, wait until the next instalment (MUAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAA **cough, choke, choke** heheh, heh*


	5. Part 5 Revenge

Part 5-Revenge

"Here, this is yours." She passed one of the containers to Shino, "Oh yeah, here's your coat." She took off the coat and passed it over.

"Thanks." He did up his coat and opened up the ramen container, "king prawn?"

"Isn't that your favourite Shino?" Kiba asked, similarly to Naruto, with a mouth full of Ramen

"Yeah…" He turned to look at Hinata who was busying herself with her ramen.

*******

The next morning he woke up and met Kiba, the two of them then both tailed him until he reached team 7's meeting room.

Naruto entered the classroom and sat down; Sakura was the only other person in. Someone knocked on the door.

**Knock**

"I'm coming"

**Knock knock**

"Wait a minute!"

**Knock knock knock knock**

The knocks were getting faster each time. Naruto headed for door, he finally got there an opened it.

"Oh, hi, what are you-" Naruto was greeted by an unknown force that sent him flying across the room. He hit the wall and sat upright. Sakura saw a drizzle of blood from his mouth and nose.

She looked over by the door and saw Shino with Kiba behind him. Shino had his hand out as though he had just launched an attack, _so it was a palm thrust…_ She looked at him closer and realised he was oozing with killing intent.

"**NARUTO! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!"** She started to run over to where Naruto was as she saw him spit up more blood. She was stopped halfway by Kiba who dragged her back to the other side of the room and held her up against the wall.

"If you reach for that sword… I'll kill you" Kiba gave her a stern warning. _Damn she's gotten hot, _he thought to himself. He looked her up and down; she was almost indistinguishable from Haruno Sakura a few months ago. Her hair was in a fringe that was too the side, she wore her head protector the way she used to except the metal part was on the side of her head rather than the top. She had allowed her hair to grow back and it was now past her knees in a ponytail. She wore a cut off string vest with a strappy belly top over it. She wore long trousers that surprisingly didn't interfere with her travel and movement. Over the trousers she wore a mini skirt with splits on both sides and also a zip on one side. She carried a katana on her back that she had become quite good at using, that she carried with an almost invisible material. She had her nose pierced and her ears, several times. She had the konoha village symbol tattooed on her stomach, although it was slightly tilted… she still had a big forehead though, but it looked good on her now rather than being just… there

"You wouldn't dare." She looked him dead in the eye

"Wanna bet, forehead?" He wrapped his free hand around her throat and dug one of his nails in on the side, "you're better off sitting down and watching the fight." He turned around to see what was happening between Naruto and Shino.

Shino was standing over Naruto; he was still oozing with killing intent. Naruto was attempting to stand up; he was still a bit shaky but he managed to get to his feet.

"What are you doing Shino?" Naruto looked him in the eye. There was still a drizzle of blood from his mouth but it had almost completely stopped coming up.

"Shut up monkey-bastard!" Shino punched him the face and sent him flying through the wall.

Naruto skidded across the grass and eventually came to a stop. When he looked up Shino was standing there cracking his knuckles. He kicked Naruto in the leg.

"Get up and fight me." Shino grabbed him by the collar of his jacket

"Why?"

"If you don't… I'll kill you" Shino threatened him. For a second Naruto was sure Shino looked like a demon.

"No choice then…" Naruto got to his feet and began to perform a couple of seals. **"KAGEBUNSHIN NO-"** Naruto's technique was interrupted by an uppercut from Shino that connected with his ribs.

Naruto flew up in the air like a rag that had been tossed carelessly. Shino heard a sharp cracking noise and concluded that he had successfully broken one of Naruto's ribs. He heard a loud thud and looked up to see Naruto lying on his back on a branch. Shino laughed to himself a bit and 'appeared' on the branch standing next to Naruto.

_I didn't even see him move._ Sakura thought to herself

"He's fast, isn't he?" Kiba said casually as though he knew what Sakura was thinking, "That's nowhere near his full speed, he's faster than Rock Lee. He's been measured at speeds beyond that super-thick-brows guy, with no effort."

"You mean Gai-sensei?" Sakura was surprised at this, Naruto had no chance, she had seen the strength Shino had shown with no effort whatsoever. Plus she could tell that he was willing to kill Naruto.

"It's kinda depressing being on the same team as someone that strong. And knowing that someone that talented isn't a Chuunin yet, he probably would be if that Kankurou guy hadn't dropped out."

Shino held a kunai to Naruto's throat, "You have no idea how much I want to…" He pressed the kunai against his jugular vein, being careful not to cut it, "right now…" 

Shino was interrupted by a fireball that hit the branch and broke it. Shino managed to keep his superiority over Naruto. Both of them were still in the same position, Shino kept the kunai against Naruto's throat and looked around to see what it was. He saw Sasuke standing in the hole in the wall with his fingers still in the tiger seal.

"Shit" Kiba mumbled under his breath

"SASUKE-KUN!!!" Sakura screamed his name like a silly schoolgirl only to have her throat throttled a bit tighter.

"What are you doing Shino?" Sasuke looked over at Shino and Naruto, ready to send another fireball

He pulled the kunai away; "You're lucky" He got up and waited for Naruto to get to his feet. He jabbed the point of his kunai into Naruto's chest and put back it into his holder, "I could kill you with my little finger." He headed out of the classroom. Kiba let Sakura down and left the room in front of Shino. When he got to the doorway he looked back over his shoulder at Naruto, "You have no idea how much I want to right now." He left the room and stood by the door where they wouldn't be able to see him, he could hear Naruto,

"Shit, I think he broke a few of my ribs" followed by a loud thud

Shino looked around the corner and saw Naruto lying on the floor with blood coming out of his mouth and nose; he had a few cuts and bruises too. Sasuke and Sakura were attempting to get him up so they could carry him to the hospital; it wasn't easy for them as he was unconscious so they didn't have any help and it's not like he was particularly light.

Shino smiled to himself. He walked off with Kiba to meet with Hinata and Kurenai.

"We shouldn't have done that Shino"

"We?"

"I'm responsible for it too; I could have stopped you when you mentioned it to me yesterday"

"True"

"That 5th Hokage bitch is gonna be all over this you know, she really likes Naruto"

"Too late to do anything about it now."

"I guess you're right. Kurenai and Hinata aren't gonna like this either"

"Hinata…" He had been so absorbed in getting revenge for what ever Naruto had done to her that he forgot to take into account her feelings for Naruto, "She's gonna fly off at me," 

"Are you sure, this **IS** Hinata we're talking about here"

"The quiet ones always have outbursts like that, trust me"

"That would be scary, she carries weapons and poisons with her too…" Kiba was imagining the sorts of things Hinata might do when she finds out. "And she knows my allergies…"

After a while they turned a corner and carried on going. They came to the training ground and saw Kurenai and Hinata waiting

"Sorry we're late sensei," Kiba started

"Cut the crap Kiba" Kurenai seemed angry, "besides, it's only been a few minutes" Kurenai suddenly seemed happy, unusually so. Especially as Kiba, Shino and Hinata all knew they were about half an hour late.

"Maybe Asuma-sensei proposed to her," Kiba whispered to Hinata and Shino

"You never know" Hinata whispered back

"He bought her something." Shino replied

"How can you tell?" Kiba snapped back

"New jewellery" He pointed out a bracelet and necklace that Kurenai never had before

"It's pretty" Hinata looked at the jewellery in admiration

"It's expensive" Kiba looked at Hinata as if to say, 'Don't expect me to buy it for you'

"Don't worry Kiba-kun, your wallet is safe" Hinata laughed

"Are you three done gossiping?" Kurenai asked from outside the huddle

"Yes sensei" the three said in unison

"Good, let's begin"

*******

Hinata woke up the next morning, she tried to move her arms but it hurt too much. She tried to move her legs but the pain was unbearable. She didn't know how she was going to train today, she wanted to, but she wouldn't be able to. She sighed, without being able to move she had no way to contact anyone. She'd have to wait until someone came to see her, whenever that may be…

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A/N-What do you think so far? Hope y'all like it J


	6. Part 6 Forgive, can't forget

Part 6- Forgive, can't forget

Hinata woke up the next morning, she tried to move her arms but it hurt too much. She tried to move her legs but the pain was unbearable. She didn't know how she was going to train today, she wanted to, but she wouldn't be able to. She sighed, without being able to move she had no way to contact anyone. She'd have to wait until someone came to see her, whenever that may be.

**Knock**

There was someone at her door; she was going to have to find a way to tell them the door was open. She figured she was just going to have to shout. "**IT'S OPEN!**" She hoped she wouldn't have to shout again, even her throat hurt.

She looked over to the doorway to her room and saw a pink haired kunouchi.

"Sakura?"

"Hinata, there's something I need to tell you, you're not gonna like it…"

"What is it?"

"It's Naruto" a tear rolled down Sakura's cheek, "He was beaten up really badly yesterday" the tear splashed on Hinata's rug, then another, and another, and another…

"Do you know who?"

"Yes, I was there when it happened…"

"Who?"

"Shino and Kiba… well accurately Shino beat him up and Kiba stopped me from doing anything…" The tears were still coming, splash… splash… splash, splash, splash splash splash, faster and faster

"Shino and Kiba? Do you know why?"

"No, but I think that if Sasuke hadn't come when he did Shino would have… would have…" Sakura was becoming frantic; she was snivelling and sobbing into the tissue she had brought with her

"Would have what?" Hinata hoped the answer wasn't what she thought it was

"When he came he was oozing with killing intent… I think he might have killed Naruto…"

A tear rolled down Hinata's cheek, she couldn't cry. Even that one tear caused her intense pain, "Send him a flower for me"

_How unoriginal_ Sakura thought to herself.

"Not just any flower, I want you to send him a white daffodil, a symbol of strength, prosperity and life"

Sakura remembered what she had said about daffodils when Lee and Sasuke were in hospital. "I'll make sure of it," with that, Sakura left.

**Knock**

_Not again. _Hinata thought to herself, she looked out of the window to see who it was. It was Kiba and Shino. She hoped that if she got no answer they would go away, but to no avail. Shino and Kiba entered her house. Both of them went straight to her room and stood in the doorway.

"She's asleep," Kiba whispered to Shino

"Wait outside," Shino replied to Kiba. Kiba left the room and waited at the front door.

Shino leaned against the doorframe for a few minutes. He then sat on a chair by her bed. "How long are you going to pretend to be asleep for?"

"However long it takes for you to go away."

"What's wrong?"

"Why?" She turned her head to look at him; her eyes were a bit pink from crying. Something had really upset her.

_Shit, I hope she doesn't mean…_ "Why what?"

"Why…why did you do that to Naruto-kun!"

"Shit," he mumbled under his breath, "I take it Sakura told you?"

"Yes she did, why did you do it?"

"Because… because…" he really wanted to tell her, just so that she wouldn't hate him, "because… because I…" he started, "I… I don't know… because he hurt you"

"When"

"The other day, when you went missing. When I asked you why… all you said was Naruto, and then you started crying again…"

"He doesn't even know what he did, it was silly really. All that happened was that I found out a small truth…" She rolled over to look at him, it hurt but that's what she wanted to do, "I'm always being cast aside by other people even though they have no idea how I really feel…" A few more tears rolled down her cheek"

"Hinata…" he looked at her, he never knew she was hurting this much

"I'm sorry Shino-kun; I didn't mean to bore you." She tried to sniff back her tears; it still really hurt to move her arms so she couldn't wipe them away.

"Hinata, I'm not gonna force it out of you but… I know that… if you feel a particular way about something, or someone… you should… tell them" he was really saying this to himself more so than to Hinata but it still helped her pick up her spirits.

"If it makes you feel any better… I made Kiba do it, he didn't want to…"

"It doesn't but thank you for trying Shino…"

"So what are you going to…"

"Help me up…"

He helped get Hinata out of bed, she managed to get her sandals and jacket on without much effort but she needed Shino's support to walk anywhere at all. He helped her out of her house.

After what seemed like years to Shino and Kiba they finally arrived at the hospital.

"Uzamaki… Uzamaki… ah here it is! Uzamaki Naruto, room 104." The hospital receptionist looked them up and down, "He is allowed to have visitors, but you'll have to wait a few minutes" She directed them to where they could sit down. When she saw Hinata getting help from Shino she added, "Does the young lady need medical attention?"

"No, I'm fine" Hinata smiled at the woman and eased herself into a chair in the waiting room.

"So do you forgive us now Hinata?" Kiba asked, he hadn't had a chance to speak to her yet

"I'm not sure yet, I know why you did it and I thank you both for wanting to protect me, but…" She trailed off a bit, "How bad did you hurt him Shino?"

"I think I broke a few ribs, apart from that just minor cuts and bruises…" he made it sound like it was nothing

"A few?" Hinata raised an eyebrow at him

"Only one… or two… or… three…" he looked at her, "they all broke at once, it's not like I expected it to happen…"

The receptionist came over to see them; "if you follow me I'll lead you to Naruto's room," they got up and followed her to Naruto's room. They came to room 104, the receptionist knocked on the door, "Naruto, there's two gentlemen and a pretty girl here for you"

A reply came from inside, "let them in"

Followed by, "if that's you Ino-pig!"

The Receptionist opened the door. Naruto, even more so than Sakura, was surprised to see Kiba and Shino at the door. Kiba entered the room first, followed by Shino who was still supporting Hinata. The receptionist closed the door behind them and left.

"Did you beat her up too?" Sakura asked with a snide tone to her voice

"Shut up Sakura" Shino replied as he helped Hinata sit down in the only chair aside from the one that Sakura was using.

"What are you here for?" Naruto asked. He eased himself up a bit. Unlike Sakura, his voice wasn't hostile.

"I came to…" he sighed, this was more embarrassing then he thought it would be, "…"

"Gotcha," Naruto smiled, "Hey, can you guys leave for a sec?"

"Sure…" Sakura got up and left the room. She slammed the door in Kiba's face; who was helping Hinata along.

When the left and had closed the door Shino turned his attention back to Naruto, "I came to… apologise for the other day"

"No problem" Naruto smiled at him

"Don't you care?"

"Well yeah… but it's not a big deal. Since you brought it up… why did you do it?"

"You upset Hinata…"

"How?"

"I don't know, but she was really upset… when I asked why she was upset, all she said was your name"

"I don't know what I did, but I'm sorry for it…"

"That's ok, but if you ever hurt her again… I might actually kill you, even if someone comes to save your ass…"

"You really care about her, don't you Shino"

"…" He blushed, no one had figured it out this easily before, no one had figured it out at all, "… yeah…" he walked over to the door and banged it in a particular place, "Kiba, I know you're eavesdropping out there."

"Am not!" came his reply from the other side of the door, "Anyway, you hurt my ear!"

"Well you shouldn't be using your beast mimic to listen into people's conversations"

"I wasn't!"

"Liar" Shino mumbled under his breath, "You guys can come back in now anyway"

The door opened and Sakura came in, followed by Kiba and Hinata.

"Hey guys, I'm sorry you just got here but I'm kind of tired so I was wondering if you could…" out of nowhere Naruto fell asleep

"I guess we had better go" Kiba whispered to Hinata and Shino. They turned around to see that Sakura had already left.

"You guys go; I'll meet you in the waiting room." Hinata said absent-mindedly

Shino dragged Kiba out of the room to allow Hinata to be alone with Naruto. When they had gone she forced herself out of the chair and walked over to Naruto.

"Naruto-kun, I wouldn't have the courage to do this if you were awake…" she leaned over him, her hair had become really long so she held it back with her left hand. She used her right hand to balance herself as she leaned closer and kissed him on the cheek. She stood up and looked at him. He was smiling now; she smiled a bit herself, "sweet dreams Naruto-kun…" She left and met Kiba and Shino in the waiting room.

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A/N-I can't tell you what's gonna happen next, because if click the menu the next chapter comes up J


	7. Part 7 Hopes

Part 7-Hopes

"Naruto-kun, I wouldn't have the courage to do this if you were awake…" she leaned over him, her hair had become really long so she held it back with her left hand. She used her right hand to balance herself as she leaned closer and kissed him on the cheek. She stood up and looked at him. He was smiling now; she smiled a bit herself, "sweet dreams Naruto-kun…" She left and met Kiba and Shino in the waiting room.

*******

"Kiba-kun!!" Hinata appeared out of nowhere behind Kiba

"**AHHH**!" He screamed out of surprise and turned around to see Hinata laughing behind him, "Don't do that to me!"

"Sorry, Kiba-kun. You scream like a girl."

"Very funny… I take it you forgive me then?"

"Yeah, you and Shino-kun, where is he, I need both of your help," she opened the door and looked around

"Hinata, you're… perkier than… ever, are you ok?"

"Yeah, I just drank a whole load of coffee and ate a lot of snacks with Chouji when I was waiting for Shikamaru this morning" Hinata was saying everything double speed this morning, Kiba was amazed he was able to keep up.

"Why were you waiting for Shikamaru?"

"I needed advice on a new jutsu I was learning"

"Oh… what do you need our help for?"

"I'll tell you when Shino-kun gets here, where is he, he's taking his time, **WHERE IS HEEE!!!**"

"You're scaring me Hinata…"

"Sorry Kiba-kun…"

After hearing all the shouting, Shino cautiously opened the door; he was greeted with the angry face of Hinata.

"**WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!!!"**

"What?"

"You're late, sit down over there," she pointed to a desk next to the one Kiba was sitting at.

"Why am I late?" He leaned over and whispered to Kiba

"I don't know, Hinata's been up and down this morning, she said she drank a whole load of coffee…" Kiba looked at Hinata, "she's scary like this, I hope it wears off soon…"

"Now listen, I need you two's help," She began, she slammed her hands down on the desk in front of Kiba, as she'd seen her father do in some of his meetings, "I need you two to protect me"

"Why?" Kiba asked, much as he did to annoy Kurenai.

"Because… I'm going to see my father…"

"I don't under-"

"We'll help you" Shino quickly cut of Kiba so that he wouldn't question her

"Great, we'll go in an hour when all this caffeine wears off." She left the room and headed home.

When she got to her home she ran to her room. She opened up her wardrobe and looked through her clothes. She threw each piece of clothing on the floor and across the room. She searched frantically. "It's here somewhere, I know I brought it with me!" She tossed a few more outfits across the room. She breathed a sigh of relief and laid the clothes out on her bed. She packed the clothes back away. She decided to have a bath and wash her hair as she had enough time. She ran the water and went back into her room. She untied her hair. She began to unplait her hair. She combed it through a few times, it made her hair easier to wash and dry, her hair rested on the floor when she stood up. Honestly she was as surprised with her hair as anyone else in the village if not more, in a matter of months her hair had grown longer and faster than anyone else's in the village. Even when it was plaited, it went just below her knees. She finished combing her hair and went to her bath.

*******

Shino and Kiba were sitting in the classroom, they didn't have anything better to do, so they bought some ramen and brought it back to the classroom.

"So are you gonna tell her?" Kiba asked, in-between mouthfuls of ramen.

"Tell her what?"

"You know, what you were talking to Naruto about."

"I thought you weren't eavesdropping?" Shino said sarcastically, raising an eyebrow at him at the same time.

"I wasn't, I just happened to be using my beast mimic on my ears when you were talking to Naruto…"

"And you just happened to have your ear against the door at the same time?" Shino asked, again sarcastically

"See, now you get it! I'm glad you understand!"

"…"

"Don't be like that Shino!" Kiba shouted with a mouth half-full of ramen

"…" Shino wiped bits of ramen and beef of his sunglasses, "Kiba stop, you're getting all your food on me…"

"Am not!!"

"…" He sighed, "Do you see those?" Shino pointed to a pile of tissues next to him

"Yeah, why?"

"Each and every one of those is covered in the ramen, beef, sauce and your spit, that I have had to wipe off my face."

"So?" Kiba laughed to himself, he really enjoyed annoying people, even if people like Shino and Hinata were harder to annoy then people like Naruto and Sakura from team 7. Everyone had a button, even though people like Shino had to have theirs pressed repeatedly.

"Stop it… or I'll kill you"

"No you won't"

"You're right, but I can cause you intense pain without doing you any real damage so you will still have to do missions"

"How?" Kiba really hoped Shino was bluffing

"This…"

Kiba looked around to see what Shino had in store for him. When he saw nothing he turned back to Shino, thinking he had outsmarted Shino, Kiba was feeling pretty smart. Then he heard a buzzing noise. He looked down at his nose and saw a wasp. It stung him in the nose; strangely Kiba didn't feel anything. "**HAH!** What was that supposed to-… **AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! IT BURNS!!!!! IT BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRNSSSSS!!!!!!" **He rolled around on the floor for a few seconds trying to get rid of the pain

The wasp flew back over to Shino and landed on his finger, "Good…" he whispered to the wasp and watched it fly through the window. "Now imaging hundreds of these Vespidae Sphecidae stinging you over and over again"

"Vespipades… what?"

"Wasps, Vespidae Sphecidae are wasps…" he sighed, "imbeciles… I'm surrounded by them…"

"Why didn't you just say that? You're the only person who knows that, apart from your clan… damn the Aburame clan and their bug controlling ways" He shook his fist at Shino.

"We'll ask Hinata, she should be here just about… now"

As if on cue Hinata opened the door.

"Good morning Hinata!" Kiba shouted

"Morning Hinata" Shino greeted her

"Good morning Kiba-kun, Shino-kun"

"Hey Hinata, what's a Vesphifada Spherical?"

"What?" She looked at him as though he was more insane then he actually was.

"He means a Vespidae Sphecidae" Shino corrected Kiba

"Oh. It's the name of the wasp family, of the Vespidae family, which is made up of hornets and wasps. Of the order Hymenoptera, of the class Hexapoda."

"Bookworm" Kiba mumbled under his breath

"I hate to act like a child, but I told you so" Shino was laughing inside his head; whereas Kiba was sure Shino was sticking his tongue out at him.

Shino sniffed the air; there was a strong scent. It took him a second to realise it was his favourite scent. Hinata… it was stronger than usual so he figured she had bathed during her hour. "Hinata, what's with those clothes?"

"These are what I will wear to see my father," She was wearing a v-necked vest with a string vest underneath and a pair of ¾ length trousers that were looser then the ones she usually wore now. She had her kunai holder attached to her right leg; "This is what I wore when I used to train with him… when he had hopes for me…"

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A/N- I forgot to say, **NO FLAMING!!!** I don't mind constructive criticism but flaming is evil


	8. Part 8 Father

Part 8-Father…

"These are what I will wear to see my father," She was wearing a v-necked vest with a string vest underneath and a pair of ¾ length trousers that were looser then the ones she usually wore now. She had her kunai holder attached to her right leg; "This is what I wore when I used to train with him… when he had hopes for me…"

"Hinata, don't force yourself to…" He began to say, he wanted to reassure her but he honestly had no idea what to say.

"We should go now…" She smiled, but Kiba and Shino could both tell that she was really depressed.

They left the classroom, once they got to a forest-like area they started moving faster, moving from tree to tree, until they came to the home of the Hyuga clan. She looked around, the way they had come was crawling with guards, branch house Jounin. Figures, unlike almost every main house Hyuga, Hinata didn't like this separation of the branch house and the main house. She hoped there might be a way to dispel the 'bird in a cage' seal, as Neji had called it. He said it represented an inescapable destiny. Hinata hated it; she never really knew anything about it until Neji showed it to Naruto at the Chuunin exam. She didn't like the idea that they could be killed with one hand seal, simply because they were of lower social status than they were. She hated everything about her clan. She hated her byakugun eyes. She didn't really hate her eyes, so much as what they represented…

"There's no other way around it," She turned back to Shino and Kiba, "We're going to have to confront them."

"But they're Jounins!" Kiba looked at her in horror, she couldn't mean fight them

Hinata jumped out of the tree and beckoned to them to follow.

"Who are you?" one of the guards stopped her as she tried to go past

"Do you not recognise me?"

"No." another guard stated, "You have the Hyuga eyes but we don't recognise you, you must be of the branch house."

"I am not"

"We don't believe you," The first guard added, he put his hand to her forehead and lifted up her fringe, "no… no seal!" He was clearly shocked that she didn't have the seal on her forehead

"I told you, I am of the main house."

"Our apologies ma'am," the second guard said as all the guards bowed to her

"D-don't, please stand up…" the power had gone from Hinata's voice, obviously this had thrown her off a bit, "you… you don't need to apologise, you are only doing your job" She started to walk off and was stopped by the guard again,

"Hiashi-sama doesn't allow outsiders"

"He will for me…" She walked away, another guard called out to her as she walked away

"How can you be so sure?"

She carried on walking then stopped. She looked over her shoulder at the guards, "he will… because he is my father…" She walked on a bit and stopped suddenly. Kiba, who wasn't paying attention to where he was going, walked straight into Hinata.

"Idiot…" Shino sighed under his breath

"You two…" Hinata began to say, still with her back to them, "you can go back if you want… this is your final chance to go back…"

"We're not just gonna leave you Hinata!" Kiba shouted, the entire village could probably hear him, "we're here to protect you, so that's what we're gonna do!"

"Indeed," Shino agreed, "of course with him as a bodyguard I doubt it'd be much help…" He mumbled under his breath, forgetting about Kiba's beast mimic

"What was that Shino?"

"Now isn't the time to pick a fight with your comrades Kiba," Shino quickly shrugged off Kiba's threats, which were probably just to lighten the mood

Hinata led them to a dojo and stopped at the door, she listened for a second. There were shouts coming from the inside.

Familiar shouts.

**"KILLING INTENT! You have to come at me with killing intent or you'll never beat me!"**

Hinata performed a familiar set of hand seals, "Byakugun!" This was probably what she used her byakugun for the most, as well as being able to see chakra and the chakra pathways in a person's body, it could also be used to see through solid objects like wood, metal… people, anything organic, like humans and animals, was harder to see through, but it could be done.

"What do you see?" Shino asked

"Father… Hana-chan…"

"Who's Hana?"

"My sister…" She looked through the wall again, the scene was familiar; she remembered being in that position many times herself. Hanabi lunged at her father, kunai in hand. Hiashi dodged the attack easily but was caught off-guard by another kunai that she had thrown using her chakra.

"Let's go…" she got up and released her byakugun. She walked to the door and slid it open. She looked inside and realised that her sister and father hadn't noticed her, either that or they just didn't care. Shino and Kiba came over and stood either side of Hinata, at which point her father stopped dead in his movements and looked at her.

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A/N-I'm pretty sure there are people who will want to flame me for these next few chapters, please try to refrain yourself


	9. Part 9 Some family

Part 9-Some family…

"Let's go…" she got up and released her byakugun. She walked to the door and slid it open. She looked inside and realised that her sister and father hadn't noticed her, either that or they just didn't care. Shino and Kiba came over and stood either side of Hinata, at which point her father stopped dead in his movements and looked at her.

"Hinata, you know outsiders are prohibited from these grounds without **MY** permission"

"Father… it… it was needed…"

"Why?"

"For… for m-my protection," Hinata's new found confidence was nothing to her father; he obviously intimidated her more than anyone else.

"What kind of Hyuga needs protection!?"

"One who was abandoned by her father…" She mumbled under her breath

"What did you say?"

"N-n-nothing…"

"She's started stuttering…" Kiba whispered to Shino, he was worried that her confidence was almost gone

"What did you say, Inuzuka?" Hiashi approached Kiba with a threatening tone to his voice, he practically hissed the word Inuzuka at him; the hostility was overwhelming.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kiba looked him dead in the eye

"Hinata, how dare you bring members of such lowly clans here!" Hiashi shouted, he couldn't stand other clans and thought of the Hyuga as the top clan in fire country, which it was considered by everyone else too, without giving other clans a chance.

Shino and Kiba were furious; they couldn't stand having no power while someone insulted their clans with no restraint as though they were dirt. However Shino could restrain himself whereas Kiba couldn't

_Kiba stay calm, control yourself, _Shino was afraid of what Kiba might do.

"What did you say about my clan?!" Kiba took a step towards Hiashi. Shino's mental pleas were of no use, it's not like either of them were telepathic anyway

"How dare **YOU **approach me like that, Inuzuka?" He reached out and wrapped his left hand around Kiba's neck; he then proceeded to lift Kiba a few inches off the ground.

Kiba clawed at Hiashi's arm in futility. Akamaru growled at Hiashi and began barking for Hiashi to put him down.

"I have a name…" Kiba choked

"Like I care."

"It's Kiba…" He gasped for breath

"So what, Inuzuka?"

"I want you to… Remember it…" Kiba smirked as Akamaru bit Hiashi's leg. Hiashi threw Kiba down in shock; Kiba slid across the floor and then sat up to see what was happening. He laughed a bit as Hiashi tried to shake him off. He watched in shock as Hiashi kicked Akamaru and sent him flying into a tree.

To all three members of team 8 this seemed to happen in slow motion. Everything was amplified. Akamaru hit the tree with a sickening thud.

"Akamaru!" All three of them called out in shock. Hinata ran over to him, she was the fastest to react. She picked him up and cradled him. She tried to see if anything was wrong.

"Stupid mut," Hiashi said, mostly to himself

"Shut up!" Kiba shouted at Hiashi, "Hinata, is he ok?"

"I'm not sure, Shino can you…?"

"Yeah," Shino sent his destruction bugs over. They formed a stretcher in order for Hinata to lay down Akamaru.

She laid him out on his front side, "His back is bleeding… Byakugun!" She looked him over, this was probably one of the few things that she liked about her byakugun, she could use it to see through flesh and help her deal with any problems she may encounter. "He has a piece of wood embedded in his flesh from the tree, it's small and it's cut a few veins. It hasn't done any major damage but the splinter is small so it's gonna be hard to get out."

"Is he gonna be ok?" Kiba hovered over her and watched what was going on

"I hope so… Kiba-kun, pass me a kunai" She looked at him with a strong look of hope in her eyes, he handed her a kunai and she wiped it with one of the antiseptic wipes that she kept with her. "Akamaru, this is going to hurt, please, bear with me." She whispered into Akamaru's ear. He whimpered a bit.

Hinata prepared the kunai and then cut into Akamaru's back. Akamaru howled out in pain. Hinata, despite Akamaru's constant moving, managed to pull out the piece of wood. She used one of the medical creams she had developed herself. She respected the medical-nins and all, but she didn't like their medicines, she wasn't full of herself by any means, but she thought her own medicines were better.

She wiped Akamaru's cut over a few times and then bandaged him up. She cradled him in her arms again as though she was protecting a young child.

"Hinata put that dog down." Her father demanded

She carried on walking towards him

"Hinata… put that disgusting animal **DOWN!"**

She stopped

"You're afraid of dogs aren't you, Hiashi-sama?" Shino approached him

"I have no idea what you're talking about…" He stated, more to convince himself than anyone else

"Your pheromone levels would state otherwise"

Kiba and Shino both took their places either side of Hinata

"What is it you want Hinata?" Hiashi approached Hinata.

"The real reason I came here…" She turned around and handed Akamaru to Kiba. She then turned back around and looked at her father, "I want… I want…. I want to know why… why… why…" A tear rolled down her cheek.

Followed by another

And another

And another

And another. until her cheeks were soaked with the salty liquid flowing from her eyes.

Shino placed a hand on her shoulder, "Hinata, don't force yourself to do this…"

She sniffed back her tears and wiped her nose on her sleeve, much to her father's dismay, "I have to… I have to do this" She looked up at her father, "why do you hate me?"

"What!" Hiashi, along with everyone else, looked at her in shock, "how could you think a thing like that?"

"Father, you've always hated me…"

"I haven't"

"Yes, you have," more tears, "you always have"

A young girl approached them, "go away, we're training…"

"Hana-chan…" Hinata kneeled in front of the young Hyuga.

"Don't call me that, you aren't my sister anymore"

"How can you look at me with that much hate in your eyes?"

"Shut up…"

"Hana-chan?"

"Shut up!"

"Hana-chan, please…"

"**SHUT UP!**" She covered her ears, "**SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!**"

"Why?"

"I don't want to hear this"

"Hanabi, whether you like it or not, I am your sister…" She stood up and looked at her father, "and whether you like it or not, I am your daughter, and **I** am heir to this clan." She turned around to leave, when she got to the door she looked back, "remember that…"

The three of them left the dojo and walked away a bit, when she was sure she was out of range of his byakugun, she collapsed against a tree.

"That was hard…" She looked at Shino and Kiba; "thank you for coming with me, you really didn't-"

"We did," Shino interjected

"He's right, we couldn't just leave you to do this by yourself…" Kiba laughed a bit

Neji came up behind them, Hinata saw him whereas Kiba and Shino didn't feel his presence until he was right behind them.

"Shit!" Kiba jumped and turned around to see Neji, "you scared me…"

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A/N Like I said, **NO FLAMING!!!** I'm just an author trying to get her fanfics out


	10. Part 10 The Eagle

Part 10-The eagle

Neji came up behind them, Hinata saw him whereas Kiba and Shino didn't feel his presence until he was right behind them.

"Shit!" Kiba jumped and turned around to see Neji, "you scared me…"

"Well done Hinata-sama…"

"What?"

"You stood up to him, I'm… happy… for you"

"… Neji-san?" She looked at him; he had never been this nice to her since they were younger, "Thank you." She bowed her head to him in appreciation

"Hinata-sama don't-"

"Neji-san!" She interrupted him. "I have a favour to ask of you…" She raised her head and looked at him

"What is it?"

"Please… don't refer to me with that title anymore."

"But Hinata-sama-"

"I mean it Neji-san"

"Hinata-sama."

"Stop it, I don't want to make this an order, it will defy the very reason I don't want to be referred to like that anymore"

"Why?"

"I don't like the idea of being held higher than someone simply because of my social status. I don't think I'm better than anyone else and if anyone else does, I'd prefer it to be because of who I am and not who my parents are or whether or not I have that horrible, inhumane seal on my forehead!" a few tears rolled down her cheeks and splashed on the grass

"You truly aren't the spoiled brat of the main house I once thought you were, you are a good person… which is nice to see…" He smiled at her a bit, "I look forward to the day when you take your place as head of the Hyuga clan Hinata-sama… I mean Hinata-san." He laughed a bit, "I apologise. I won't make that mistake again."

"…"

"You made me laugh… I haven't laughed in ages. Thank you." He bowed his head to her

"Neji-san…" Hinata stepped forward, "look at me"

"…" He raised his head

"Your gratitude is unneeded." She took another step, "because mine to yours is equal, if not more." She took one last step and hugged him

"…" Neji was completely surprised by her hug. He looked over at his shoulder, where she rested her head, and realised she was crying, "Why are you crying?"

"I'm grateful for having someone like you to protect me"

"Eh?"

"Your father once said to you that you would, 'live to protect her and the Hyuga blood.' Am I correct?"

He nodded

"Then I am glad it was you and not someone else."

He froze a bit, taken aback by her words

"I hope you survive, to see me take my place as leader…"

"…" He stared at her a bit and then returned her embrace, "Hinata-san, I'll make sure I see it."

Hinata stepped back and leaned up against the tree. She looked at Neji, "Neji-san, you are my closest family in the branch house, so I say this to you more than anyone else. I will become clan leader, I will abolish the branch house, main house difference…" She smiled at him, "and I **will** find a way to release that seal, death wont be the only way to get rid of it, I promise."

"Hinata-san, the branch house owes you our gratitude."

She laughed a bit, "I haven't done anything yet"

"Simply willing to do this for us is kindness that hasn't been witnessed before" He turned around to leave

"Neji-san!" Hinata called him

"Yeah," He turned around and looked her

"A bird deserves to soar in the skies he was granted at birth, not to be cooped up in a cage. I will make sure the branch house soars again."****

*******

He woke up. He didn't open his eyes. Too much effort. He felt something on his cheek. It was wet, warm. Almost like a sponge. He figured it was a tongue.

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A/N-I'm quite proud of those chapters, I'm sorry if they were a bit out of character


	11. Part 11 Realisation

Part 11-Realisation

He woke up. He didn't open his eyes. Too much effort. He felt something on his cheek. It was wet, warm. Almost like a sponge. He figured it was a tongue.

"Akamaru. Stop it."

It didn't stop

"Akamaru, stop. Now."

It wasn't stopping.

"What the hell? Akamaru, why aren't you listening to me?"

"Kiba get the hell out of bed."

"What?" He opened his eyes and looked over at the doorway, "dad…?"

"Kiba, you've been lying there for 15 hours."

"I have?"

"Yes, and your snoring is a bitch. Komaru, come."

"Komaru?" He looked at the large wolf-like dog that had just jumped off of his bed. "Where's Akamaru?"

"Downstairs. Hurry up and get dressed, you have visitors. Four boys and three girls. Apparently you have a mission."

"Visitors?"

"Kiba, hurry up and wake up, properly." He stepped aside to reveal Hinata standing in the doorway, "the rest are downstairs." With that he left

"Hinata, don't just stand there, you can come in if you want."

"Thanks." She walked into the room timidly and sat on a chair by Kiba's bed. "Is your throat okay?"

"Yeah, it's a bit sore but nothing serious."

"Here." She walked over to his bed and handed him one of her medicines. "Don't worry, I made sure there's nothing that you're allergic to in there. It was hard though; you're allergic to some of my main ingredients in most of my medicines."

"Umm, Hinata?"

"Yeah?"

"How do I use it?"

"Kiba, I swear, you're so useless sometimes. Hand me the container." She took the container out of his hand and opened it. She pinned her hair behind her ears and leaned over to Kiba. "Look it's so simple." She put a little bit of the medical cream on the ends of her fingers and rubbed it on the side of his neck. "There. That should feel a bit better."

"Yeah, it does."

"Good."

Hinata tended to his neck and throat, oblivious to the conflict that was going on in Kiba's mind. He remembered vividly the conversation he had had with Shino before.

_"What is it you like most about her that stands out?"_

_"Who?"_

_"Hinata."_

_"…Probably her… her smell…"_

_"Are you saying you like her because she stinks?"_

_"No! Her scent… It's like roses, only… sweeter… softer… more subtle…"_

_"Are you sure it's not just the bugs?"_

_"The bugs hate it, it's too sweet for them apparently. Go figure…"_

_---------------------------_----------------------------------------------------------------

A/N-Ooh competition for Shino.


	12. Part 12 Visitors

Part 12-Visitors

Hinata tended to his neck and throat, oblivious to the conflict that was going on in Kiba's mind. He remembered vividly the conversation he had had with Shino before.

_"What is it you like most about her that stands out?"_

_"Who?"_

_"Hinata."_

_"…Probably her… her smell…"_

_"Are you saying you like her because she stinks?"_

_"No! Her scent… It's like roses, only… sweeter… softer… more subtle…"_

_"Are you sure it's not just the bugs?"_

_"The bugs hate it, it's too sweet for them apparently. Go figure…"_

He looked at her. She was concentrating immensely on his neck. Then she looked at him, when she realised he had been looking at her she quickly looked away. Kiba smiled a bit.

"Why are you watching me like that Kiba-kun."

"I'm trying to see what you're doing to my neck."

He could smell it, exactly the smell Shino was talking about.

_No! This isn't right! _He tried to stop himself but the scent was addictive.

_Shino likes her, not me!_ He tried to shift himself so he couldn't smell her anymore. Unfortunately he knocked her hand and she lost her balance. She tried to keep balance but at the angle she had leaned over at it was impossible. She felt her leg twitch and she collapsed. Landing in a heap on Kiba.

"Oh!"

Kiba and Hinata both looked over to the door and saw a flash of platinum blonde hair.

"NO! It's not what you-!" Hinata began to shout

"Don't bother, she's a gossip, it doesn't matter what we say…" He sighed, "Now I know why Shikamaru gets annoyed so easily."

Hinata stood up, "You should get dressed, I can do the last bit downstairs." She left the room

He sat down on the end of his bed for a minute. "I… don't understand…"

He walked into his bathroom. He ran the taps and began to disrobe. When he had finished, he looked in the mirror. It really bugged him. He wondered what it was like to be a normal 12 year old, like the kids in the fire country. He was probably only twelve in years. Mentally he ranged from 10 to 16; physically he was probably about 18. Minus the height…

*******

She came down the corridor.

"Why did you do it?" Questioned a familiar voice, Hinata figured it was Sakura's

"I don't have to explain myself to you." The second voice belonged to Shino

She turned the corner into the room where everyone was. She looked over to where Shino was and saw Sakura punch him. He turned back and looked at her with a sinister look in his eye. Of almost any attack you could throw at him, he hated being punched in the face the most. He clenched his fist. He prepared to punch her back and was shocked by the sound of a slap that ripped through the air.

"**HOW DARE YOU!**"

Shino turned around to see Sakura recovering from a severe backhand and Hinata holding her wrist above her head in order to prevent a retaliation.

"Don't you **EVER** lay a hand on Shino-kun like that again!" Hinata looked at Sakura with the same look that Shino had had a few seconds ago. For a second Sakura was sure that Hinata was going to kill her.

"Hinata?" Shino looked at her; confused as to what had just happened

"Yeah?"

"Look at me."

"Why?" Hinata turned her head a bit to look at him and was jerked back by Sakura

"Why did you do that?" Sakura freed her arms from Hinata's grip and rested her hand on the red mark that Hinata had left

"Be glad, what Shino-kun was about to do was much worse then what I've done."

"Don't you care about what he did to Naruto?"

"I do. But Naruto already forgave him, there's no point in holding a grudge."

"Just because Naruto forgave them, doesn't mean I have to. I don't even like being in this house because I know Kiba lives here."

"Sakura. Let it go." A familiar blonde haired boy came up behind Sakura and stood next to her.

"No, I won't."

"He's, right. Let it go."

Hinata and Sakura both turned their heads to see Kiba standing in the doorway. He walked over to Shino and Hinata.

"You!" He pointed at Sakura and immediately hid behind Shino. "Why are you in my house?"

"Because we have a mission. Really they wanted all nine from our year but Chouji's on a mission with his Dad." Mentioned a blonde haired kunouchi, "Oh! It's the two lovers!" She pointed at Kiba and Hinata.

"Ino, you don't even know what you're talking about."

"I know what I saw." Argued Ino

"What you saw was the result after Hinata lost her balance and fell."

"I bet it was," Ino said sarcastically

"Believe what you want," Sighed Kiba

"Ino, quit it." Shikamaru came over. He was the last person to join the crowd that had been accumulating around the arguing Shinobi. "Geez, Ino. You're so annoying..."

"Fine..." She looked at Kiba, "I'll expose you..."

"Expose what? There's nothing to expose!"

"Shut up Kiba. I need to explain the mission." He looked around at everyone and sighed under his breath. "What a bother... Everyone. You seven, Uzamaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura of team seven, Aburame Shino, Inuzuka Kiba and Hyuga Hinata of team eight, Yamanaka Ino of team ten Are the most talented genin this village currently has to offer. Because of this you seven, plus myself, have been chosen for this mission."

"What's the mission?" Naruto shouted out

"Personally I think Tsunde-sama thinks too highly of us..."

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A/N-Ooh Suspense, my evilness is unparalleled, plus I haven't finished the next chapter, MUAHAHAHAHHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I didn't choke this time, neener neener neener!!


	13. Part 13 Panic attack

 Part 13-Panic attack

"What's the mission?" Naruto shouted out

"Personally I think Tsunde-sama thinks too highly of us..."

"Why!!!" Naruto was becoming impatient

"This mission is ANBU rank. I would have turned it down, but as Konoha village shinobi, we are obliged to comply..."

"What the hell is the damn mission!?" Naruto shouted

"Infiltration, information gathering, and possibly assassination."

"Where?"

"Hidden cloud village, their Kage has been suspected of wanting to abduct Hyuga Hiashi."

Hinata's eyes suddenly widened, her heart began to beat double speed and her breathing became erratic.

"Probably because they want the secrets of the byakugun, which means they may also want to kill him. It is also suspected that his advisor is the one telling him to break the alliance, if we cannot convince him to stop, we will have to kill him for threatening our county. This may also break out in war…"

Her heartbeat sped up even more. She stared at Shikamaru. _Kill… Father…? _She prayed what he said wasn't true. She backed up against the wall; her breaths became even shorter. Shikamaru's voice became hazy. She sat in the corner and closed her eyes; shut them tightly. She could barely hear the voices of the people around her asking her if she was alright…

*******

She woke up, what seemed to her, a few minutes later. She tried to open her eyes but she couldn't.

"Is she ok?"

"Yeah…" Answered a second voice.

"It looked like a panic attack." Added a third voice

"It was." She spoke up. She reached out for the closest person and pulled herself up. She forced her eyes open and looked around. She was still in Kiba's house, She was sat next to Kiba; opposite her was Shino and Naruto. "How long was I out for?" She blinked a few times to focus in on everyone.

"Two hours…" Shino looked at her, at least she thought he was, she couldn't see his eyes through his glasses, "Shikamaru said they'd wait at the village gates."

"What made you panic like that?" Kiba questioned he

"Hearing about my father…"

"I'm surprised you care." Kiba mentioned under his breath

"He's my father, of course I care."

Naruto suddenly got up and walked out of the room, Hinata looked at him through the window, he looked depressed which was unlike himself.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata shouted, she stood up to get him however he legs buckled under her weight and she fell back opposite where she had been sitting and landed next to Shino.

"Hinata, don't worry about him. What happened to you there?" Kiba further questioned her.

"When I heard that they may want to kill my father for the byakugun… It scared me…"

"Everyone gets scared Hinata." Kiba tried to console her

"You don't understand…" She turned her head away and looked at the floor, "I was scared like I never have been before… I've… I've looked in the face of the person who was about to kill me and never been this scared…" A tear rolled down her cheek, "but th-this scares m-me beyond… beyond anything I've felt before…"

"That's just who you are, you care more about other people than yourself…" Shino stood up and looked out of the window, "earlier, when Sakura punched me…" He was interrupted by a snigger from Kiba, he shot Kiba a dirty look and carried on with what he was saying, "you wouldn't have acted like that if she had punched you, you would have apologised and shrunk away into a corner…"

"Live to protect your precious people…" Hinata mumbled under her breath

"What?" Kiba looked at her in confusion

"Something that Naruto-kun taught me… You two are precious people to me, so I want to protect you…"

"Hinata…" Kiba's face suddenly became serious, "you don't have to do this mission…"

"I don't have to, but I want to."

"You do know that your life is more at risk then anyone else going on this mission, because you have the byakugun. Because you're of the main house the byakugun won't be sealed when you die, so they won't be afraid to kill you… Hinata… Think carefully about this…"

"Kiba-kun…" Hinata stood up and walked to the door, "We're going to be late if we don't hurry…"

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A/N what do you think? How will she do on the mission?


	14. Part 14 Competition

Part 14-Competition

The eight of them left through the village's gates, they were no longer in the sanctuary of the hidden konoha village. 7 of the most talented genin the village have; Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuga Hinata, Aburame Shino, Haruno Sakura, Uzamaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke and Yamanka Ino, and finally, the newest and probably most intelligent Chuunin so far, Nara Shikamaru.

They travelled for a day until they came to the fire country's boundaries.

"We can't go any further for now…" Shikamaru stopped

"Why not?" Naruto attempted to get Shikamaru to keep walking

"Because where we are standing is fire country territory, if we walk about 10 meters that way," he pointed to his right, "we'll be in sound country, once we cross that border we have officially started this mission. We have passes but since that is Orochimaru's country, we may not be allowed entry if we are caught by any sound-nins."

"We may as well camp here for tonight then…" Ino threw down her bags, soon followed by everyone else.

"Man I'm tired!" Kiba decided to make a point of his tiredness, he walked over to his tent and tripped over a rock, he got up and dusted him self off, "I'm okay!"

"Hahahaha! You tripped over a rock!" Naruto proceeded to ridicule Kiba as he walked towards him and tripped over the very same rock

Kiba looked down at Naruto, raised an eyebrow and held out his hand, "need help?"

"Umm…" Naruto looked around, "Yeah… Thanks…" Naruto reached out his hand and Kiba helped him up, "try not to draw attention to this…"

"Everyone's looking already… and laughing…"

"Just don't embarrass me…"

"So… You mean, don't do what you did?"

"Yeah."

**"Hahahaha! You tripped over a rock!** You mean that?" Kiba smiled a little

Naruto shot him and evil glare and walked off, cursing under his breath. Kiba turned around and headed to where Shino and Hinata had set up. He stood there for a minute, wondering where they had gone when he heard a loud shot from about 5 meters away. _That sounds like…_ He turned and ran as fast as he could, closely followed by Akamaru.

"**NINPOU, FIRE STORM NO JUTSU!" **A whirl of flames flew at Hinata's opponent, who dodged them easily

"Kikai bunshin no jutsu." Shino's bugs created a perfect clone of himself. The two Shino's approached Hinata.

"Damn…" Hinata jumped away from the approaching Shinos, she stood on a branch about halfway up the tree, she performed a set of hand seals that Kiba had seen on many occasions, "byakugun!" she blinked to focus in on her opponent and his clone, as soon as she could tell Shino's chakra apart from the bugs' she performed a familiar set of hand seals, **"FIRE STORM NO JUTSU!**" Another whirl of flames flew at Shino's clone. The bugs immediately dispersed.

"Damn…" This time it was Shino's turn to have his plan thwarted. He sighed; he found it amazing that bugs from fire country were afraid of fire. He frowned, he couldn't think of anything that wouldn't harm Hinata

"Maybe you guys should give it a rest, ne?" Kiba jumped down from the tree, he stayed at the sidelines just in case they decided to carry on

"Yeah, I guess you're right Kiba-kun." Hinata walked to the edge of the branch she was standing on and jumped off, unfortunately for and unsuspecting Kiba she landed on him causing Kiba a very unpleasant feeling in his head. "Oh my god, Kiba you're bleeding!"

"Hinata?" He managed to choke out

"Yeah?" Hinata answered while she was plastering the cuts that had now appeared on Kiba's cheek

"You're… crushing… mee…"

"Oh! Sorry!" Hinata jumped up, she looked down at him and raised an eyebrow, "do you ever go through a day in your life without getting injured?"

"Not since I was born…" He stood up and brushed himself off, "Hinata, where did you learn that skill?"

"Remember when I said that I was getting help from Shikamaru on some new jutsus?"

"Vaguely…" He raised an eyebrow, "that was it?"

"One of them… I've been practising elemental type jutsus, so far fire and water types have been the easiest."

"Water types… unusual…" Shino raised his own eyebrow

"We should rest up, our mission starts properly tomorrow…" Hinata strolled off towards where they had set up, followed by Akamaru. Kiba turned to follow Hinata and Akamaru but he was pulled back by Shino.

"You like her, don't you?"

"Me? No way, she's totally not… my… type?" Kiba could tell by the look on Shino's face that he didn't believe him

"Idiot, it's obvious, I'm honestly surprised that no one's noticed it other than me."

"When did you notice?"

"Probably when we were in the academy, I just never brought it up…"

"Shino, if you want… I'll back off…"

"Don't… I'm not going to make you do that, besides, you liked her first"

"This is pretty unusual for you Shino…"

"I look forward to the competition…"

"So do I…"

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A/N-Sorry it took so long to write, I had really bad writers block, I still cant think of anything for my Gaara fic, the only reason I managed to write this was because of questions from my mum, yes that's right, my MOTHER reads this fic


	15. Pasrt 15 Gomen

Part 15-Gomen

"I look forward to the competition…"

"So do I…"

*******

They managed to make it safely across the sound country into lightning country, minus a few encounters with gangs and thieves hoping to attack anyone who crossed their paths. Thankfully for them they hadn't been spotted by any shinobi. They camped about a mile away from the hidden cloud village and agreed it would be best to move in when it became dark.

Hinata stood up wandered around; Kiba and Shino were setting up their tents and had left her with nothing to do. She walked a bit and found herself in front of, or rather behind, Naruto; she tapped him on the shoulder and, after repeatedly tripping over her own words, asked if she could talk to him privately. They both walked to an area out of earshot of everyone at the campsite and sat down.

"So, what did you want to talk to me about Hinata?"

"I-I wanted to apologise…"

"For what…?"

"O-on behalf of Shino-kun and Kiba-kun… They… they're very overprotective of me, a-and I think they got a little ahead of themselves…" she poked her index fingers together, as she was accustomed to doing when she was nervous

"I've been wondering, what exactly did I do that was so bad?"

"… I… heard… and…" Hinata blushed furiously and attempted to change the subject, "… ummm, Naruto-kun… when I was talking about my father before… why did you leave like that?"

"Your father… he treats you so badly and yet, you talk about him with such love…  It made me wonder what my life would have been like if I had had a family," Naruto turned his face away from hers and looked at the ground between his feet, depression engulfing his expression*, "I had guardians, but that was more to make sure I didn't die rather then look after me and I was left to fend for myself since I was 3…" He looked back at her, deep blue eyes, boring in to pearl whites; he quickly averted his gaze back to the ground. His eyes suddenly felt heavy with tears; he held them back, not wanting to seem weak in front of Hinata

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata stared at her blonde crush; she really wanted to hold him, almost to protect him, instead she stood up and walked away, she didn't want to but her body had acted on its own. Had she thought about what she was going to do she probably would have spilled everything out to him, How she liked him since they were in the academy. She stopped mid-step and thought carefully about what she was doing, she looked back at him, "umm, Naruto-kun…?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you like to… walk back to the campsite with me?" She smiled at him sheepishly as he stood up and walked over to her

"Can't say no, can I?" He stood next to her and returned the smile, he had to look up at her to do it properly, it really bothered him that the only people in the village that were shorter than him were younger than him by a few years or more. Hinata blushed furiously and walked next to Naruto, being careful to take each step carefully in order to avoid tripping over anything

*******

"Take each step carefully, you never know what may happen when we enter the village," Shikamaru's voice rang strongly through each of the 7 genin, "Always be prepared, 'a true shinobi must read underneath the underneath,' they made us learn that quote to death at the academy, now it's time to prove that we really understand it."

"Wow, Shikamaru, that speech was so inspirational. It was so out of character for you,"

Shikamaru shot Ino 'the look' and carried on with his speech, "I've never been one who was really involved in anything, but the safety of this village depends on this mission. I've never been one who cares… although I seem to have a talent for inspirational speeches… But the safety of our village depends on this mission."

That was the last chance he had to say anything positive that day

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A/N-Cliff-hanger! Dun, dun, dunnnnnnnnnn

*hey, it rhymes!


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